Hollywood, Florida Bus Crash Sends Woman to Hospital

A Hollywood, Florida woman allegedly crashed into a bus on Monday, news sources report. Information regarding the elderly woman’s identity was not immediately available following the crash; she reportedly had to be hospitalized. At this time, it does not appear as though anyone on the bus was injured. Police are currently conducting an investigation; so far, no charges have been filed.

According to reports, the accident occurred around 2:00 Monday afternoon on North 24th Avenue, a two-lane street, near Johnson Street in Hollywood. Sources say the victim was southbound on the street when, for reasons not yet known, she collided with a northbound transit bus. The collision crushed the front of the victim’s van.

“I was in the house and when I heard a boom,” witness Isabel Santos said. “I ran outside and was trying to pull the [van’s] door open but we couldn’t. So we called 911 because it was all we could do.” The victim was lucid and able to give Santos her husband’s phone number. “I called her husband and let him know that she was on her way to the hospital. He was like, ‘Oh my God, is she OK?’ and I couldn’t tell him because it was not for me to say.”

Rescue teams had to remove the doors on the driver’s side of the van in order to free the trapped victim. Reports say the victim sustained minor injuries and was taken to the Memorial Regional Hospital.

The bus belongs to Broward County Transit, and the driver and two passengers aboard the bus escaped unscathed. Officials from the transit company were on the scene investigating later that day, reports say. It remains unclear who was at fault in the crash.

Although car accidents happen every day, Florida roads may soon be a safer place now that Governor Rick Scott has announced that he plans to sign a measure banning texting while driving into law. The ban will effectively make it illegal to text while driving within the state of Florida. Once passed, Florida will become the 41st state to ban the dangerous activity. “As a father and a grandfather, texting while driving is something that concerns me when my loved ones are on the road,” Gov. Scott said in a statement.
The ban restricts drivers from “manually typing or entering multiple letters, numbers, symbols, or other characters into a wireless communications device or while sending or reading data in such a device for the purpose of non-voice interpersonal communication, including, but not limited to, communication methods known as texting, emailing and instant messaging.”

According to reports, the punishment for a first violation of the new ban will be a $30 fine along with the costs of going to court. If caught texting while driving a second time within five years of the first violation, offenders will have to pay a $60 fine as well as court fees, sources say. Scott is hopeful that the new fines will deter motorists from using their cell phones while driving. However, it is important to note that the ban does not affect talking on a cell phone while driving, which is still legal in Florida.